Plate holding means for printing presses



Dec. 25, 1934. J R TOMLIN I 1,985,627

PLATE HOLDING MEANS FOR PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed July 10 1951 5 Shgets-Sheet l V ll [W /77" I Dec. 25, 1934. J, R. TOMLIN 1,985,627

PLATE HOLDING MEANS FOR PRINTING PRESSES I Original Filed July 10, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 i INVENTQR Deca 25, 1934. J R TOMLIN 1,985,627

PLATE HOLDING MEANS FOR PRINTING PRESSES Original Filed July 10, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Dec. 25, 1934 mssszq PLATE noumvc MEANS roa ram'rlna FBESSES "John B. Tomlin, Alexandria, Va asslgnor to K Hoe b 00., Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York: Irving Trust temporary trustee Company,

Application July 10, 1931, Serial No. 556,005

Renewed August 27, 1934 Claims.

This invention relates to printing machines, and particularly to means for attaching printing plates to the roll or cylinder of the machine.

The means employed at present for looking or securing printin 3 plates to the cylinder embodies clamps which engage the curved edges of the plates and securely hold the same to the cylinder. In most instances such clamping means are suiflcient, but where high rotational speeds are obtained, which is the tendency at present, the use Fig of such securing means becomes dangerous, due to the fact that centrifugal force incident to the more rapid rotation of the cylinder tends to break the plate away from the clamping means.

5 It is an object of the present invention to provide improved securing means for the plates which will enable the cylinder to travel at much increased speeds without likelihood or danger of the plate becoming thrown or broken away irom 20 the cylinder.

A further object of the invention is to provide locking means which will operate in conjunction with the clamps and other fasteners at present employed, and wherein the additional locking 5 means involves but little departure from the construction of the cylinder and printing plate as now employed.

A further and particular object 01 the invention is to provide additional locking means for 30 stereotype plates wherein the applying and removing operations of the plates are carried on as usual and without the exercise of special skill .or additional work.

with these objects in view together with others 35 which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts, all as will be described more fully hereinafter, illustrated in the drawings and particularly pointed out 40 in the claims:-

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an end view, parts broken away, of a conventional form of press cylinder constructed in accordance with the invention,

45 Fig. 2 is a fragmentary plan view of the cylinder and plate and illustrating the plate in the position it will assume prior to being moved to locked position,

Fig. '3 is a similar'view showing the parts as 50 moved to full locking position,

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view on the line 4 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary end view of the cylinder showing a slight modification of the improved 5 locking means,

Figs.6and 'l areviewssimilartoFigs.2and 3 and illustrating the modified construction,

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken upon line 8 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 9isaviewsimilartol 'lg.2anddiscloslns 5 a further modification of the invention,

Fig. 10 is a transverse sectional view taken upon line 10 of Fig. 9,

Fig. 11 is a similar view taken upon line 1 of 9, 1 Fig. 12 is a section taken upon line 12 of Fig. 9, 0

Fig. 13 is a view similar to Fig. 9 and showing a still further mod fication of the invention,

Figs. 14 and ii are sectional views taken upon lines 14 and 15 respectively of Fig. 13. 15

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary view similar to Fig. 3 and showing a further modified form of the invention,

Fig. 17 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially upon line 17 of Fig. 16,

Fig. 18 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially upon line 18 0! Fig. 16,

-Fig. 19 is a plan view of the cylinder face and illustrating the particular formation and shape 3; the recess provided therein for the locking ock,

Fig. 20 is a bottom plan view of a portion of a stereotype plate and showing the construction of the guide for the locking block.

Fig. 21 is a plan view, parts broken away, of the locking block for use in connection with this modification of the invention,

Fig. 22 is an end view of the block, and

Fig. 23 is a side elevation of the block.

Referring now more particularly to the drawin'gs, the printing roll or cylinder is represented generally at 9, and is supported upon the shaft 10 in the usual manner. This cylinder is equipped with the usual well known member for clamping the plate edge, including the arcuate clamp 11 40 carried by a lug or block 12 mounted for longitudinal travel within asuitable recess in the circumference of the cylinder, and which is moved to clamped or unclamped positions by; operation of a. screw indicated at 13. These parts are standard and well known, and further detailed description and illustration is believed to be unnecessary.

The invention resides in supplemental locking means upon the printing plate 14 and the cylinder 9, which means are brought into locking operation when the clamping member moves the said plate into proper and final position upon the cylinder. In one embodiment oi! the invention, the inner curved surface of the printing plate 14 is provided with a tapered lug 15,

' by screws or bolts.

Each printing plate and the cylinder surface which it overlies will be provided with several of the complementary locking members described,.

arranged at such places as will insure a proper and tight fitting of the plate to the cylinder and to share equally among them the strains incident to centrifugal force. The socket and lug members are so positioned that when the clamp 11 has moved the plate to proper position upon the cylinder, the said lug and socket members will have become interen'gaged and in wedged relation.

The modification illustrated in Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive shows the reverse of the lug and socket construction above outlined. In this instance the lug members 15 are carried by the surface of the cylinder, while the socket portions 16 of the interlocking members are formed or secured upon the under face of the plate. The operation, itwill be understood, is precisely the same as that described in connection with the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Referring to Figs. 9-12 inclusive there is illustrated a further modification, wherein one side 16 of the socket member carried by the roll is slidable toward or away from its complementary or fixed socket member 16. The member 16 is slidably received within a recess 17 in the cylinder 9, and is normally held in the limit of its travel toward the fixed socket member 16 by a coil spring 18 encircling a stud or pin 19 projecting rearwardly from the member 16 The dove tail projection 15- slides between the fixed and movable socket portions 16'16 and proper engagement is insured by the spring pressed member 16. It will be understood that this construction avoids the necessity for extreme accuracy in the machining of the taper surface on the plate or cylinder.

The modification disclosed in Figs. 13 to 15 shows a still further embodiment of the inventive idea, wherein the dove tail lug member 20 is carried by the cylinder 9 and is slidable axially thereof. This member is provided with a rearwardly projecting pin or stud 21 around which is engaged an expansion spring 22 normally maintaining the projection at the limit of its outward movement. This arrangement insures a proper engagement of the slidable projection with the fixed socket member 16, and obviously avoids the necessity of minute accuracy in the machining of the tapered surfaces thereof.

Figs. 16 to 20 show an additional form of the invention, being generally a reversal of the construction as shown by Figs. 13, 14 and 15. In this further modification, the removable plate carries the dovetail lug or block member which slides axially of the cylinder and interlocks within a recess in the latter. More particularly, the underface of the plate is equipped with spaced guide members 30 having their adjacent longitudinal edges undercut or beveled as at 31 to receive the similarly formed lateral edges of slide block 32. The lower portion of block 32 projects beyond the guides 30 and has tapered or beveled longitudinal edges 33 to interflt and lock with correspondingly tapered walls 34 defining the sides of a recess 35 in the cylinder 9. An expansion spring 36 is interposed between the head or block 32 and a wall or stop 37 near the rear ends of guides 30. This spring thus normally forces the block to locking position. The walls 34 in the cylinder. are disposed in converging relation while the beveled sides 33 of the block are similarly formed, whereby secure inter-fitting and interlocking of the parts is assured. The block .32 has secured thereto one end of a fiat or leaf surfaces on the block and cylinder engage with each other, and the block is forced backwardly, opening up the gap between the shoulder 39 and stop 37 just before the plate is moved into lockedup position.

The operation will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be seen that I have provided means of an improved nature as an auxiliary clamping or holding means to the usual well known type of plate clamp. In instances where several plates are arranged longitudinally upon a cylinder, it will be understood that the same will be similarly formed with the lug and socket members so that operation of the end clamps of thecylinders will cause interengaging action of the locking members of the several plates.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:-

1. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, means on said roll to move the plate longitudinally thereof, and locking members inwardly of the ends of the plate and roll and projecting outwardly from the surfaces thereof brought into interengaging relation when the plate is moved inwardly of the roll.

2. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, cooperating locking members on said roll and plate inwardly from the ends thereof, a clamp for the edge of said plate; said clamp capable of moving said plate to bring said locking members into interengaging relation.

3. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, socket members arranged on said roll at spaced intervals, projections on said plate to cooperate in locking engagement with said sockets, and a clamping member to engage and clamp an edge of said plate and to simultaneously move said projections into said socket members.

4. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, dovetail lugs depending from said plate, socket members secured to said roll, dovetail walls in said sockets to receive and mate with said lugs, a clamp member at an end of said roll adapted to move said plate and said lugs into said sockets, and means for moving said clamp.

5. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, lugs depending from said plate, engaging elements projecting from said rolls, said lugs and elements adapted to interlock when the plate is slid a predetermined distance upon said roll, a clamp to engage an edge of said plate and to move the latter, and means for moving said clamp.

6. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, and spring pressed interlocking members on adjacent faces of said roll and plate to hold the latter securely to the former.

7. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, a socket member on said roll, a spring pressed element associated with said socket member, and a projection on said plate to be engaged in said socket and heldtherein by said element. v

8. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, a socket on said roll, a projection on said plate, interlocking elements on said socket and projection, and a spring normally forcing said projection into said socket.

i 9. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon said roll, dove tail lugs on said roll, a dove tail projection on said plate adapted to engage between said lugs, said projection being slidable between said lugs, and a spring urging said projection between said lugs.

10. In a printing press, roll and plateelements, a socket on one of said elements, a movable projection on the other element, and means for moving said projection into locking engagement with said socket.

11. In a printing press, a roll element, a plate element, a socket member on one of said elements, a projecting member on the other element, one oi! the members being yieldably biased towards a predetermined position, and means for moving said members into interlocking engagement.

12. In a printing press, a roll, a plate to rest upon the roll, a socket on said roll, the socket having a fixed member and a yieldably biased member,

and a projection on the plate to engage between and interlock with the members 01' the socket.

13. In a printing press, a roll element, a plate element, a socket member on one of the elements, a projecting member on the other element constructed and arranged to interlock with the socket member, one of the members having a yieldably biased component, and means for moving said members into interlocking engagement.

14. In a printing press, a roll element, a plate element, a socket member on one of the elements, a projecting member on the other element constructed and arranged to interlock with the socket member, one of the members having a yieldably biased component, and means for moving the plate element relative to the roll element thereby moving the socket and projecting members into interlocking engagement.

15. The combination with a plate clamping de-- vice by which a stereotype plate is clamped at its circular ends by a longitudinal motion along the cylinder on which it is located, of means whereby the operation of the clamping of the plate at its curved ends will also clamp the plate down at points intermediate its curved ends on the cylinder.

JOHN R. TOMLHI. 

